THE Champions League final at Wembley was halted after just 30 seconds when THREE pitch invaders ran onto the field.
And it was up to Borussia Dortmund midfielder Marcel Sabitzer to tackle one of them to the ground.
Play was stopped within the first minute of the hotly-anticipated European football showpiece between the Germans and Real Madrid.
The three troublemakers evaded Wembley’s beefed up £5MILLION security operation and made their way onto the pitch – each sporting the name ‘Mellstroy’ on their T-shirts.
Mellstroy is a controversial Russian blogger, who social media reports suggest had offered £300,000 to anyone who stormed the pitch wearing his name.
The 25-year-old streamer, real name Andrey Burim, has been accused of going to extreme lengths to attract views.
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He was arrested in late 2020 for beating a model, Alena Efremova, on a live broadcast.
It is currently not known if the offer is legitimate, if all three will be paid separately, or at all.
A Wembley spokesperson revealed the three pitch invaders have all been arrested.
A statement said: “It is illegal to enter the field of play at Wembley Stadium, and we strongly condemn the actions of those who interrupted the UEFA Champions League Final shortly after kick-off.
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“All of the individuals have now been arrested. We will support the relevant authorities to ensure appropriate action is taken.”
The ball had been rolled back to Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois before the first invader was spotted.
TV cameras immediately panned away from the incident.
Both Carlo Ancelotti and Edin Terzic could only look on in annoyance as they waited for the game to resume.
One of the men that stormed the pitch attempted to take a selfie with Madrid and Brazil superstar Vinicius Jr.
Another pitch invader ran past Courtois before security could get to him.
When he reached near the centre-circle, he was apprehended by marshals.
Former Manchester United midfielder Sabitzer aided in tackling the pitch-invader to the ground.
Bellingham outshines Sancho on the night of his dreams at Wembley
THE very moment Vinicius Junior struck the second goal, Jude Bellingham sank to his knees, stretched out his arms and looked up at the sky, writes Charlie Wyett.
It was the moment that Bellingham had always dreamed of, to win the Champions League. The fact it came at Wembley, on home soil, made it that little sweeter.
Bellingham delivered the pass to Vinicius who scored to ensure that Real Madrid, remarkably, have now been the kings of Europe on 15 occasions.
It was the final kick of the biggest game in Bellingham’s life as he was immediately replaced by Joselu in a tactical switch by Carlo Ancelotti.
With no Premier League teams involved, this was an English duel between Bellingham and Jadon Sancho. The west midlands v south London. Stourbridge versus Kennington.
It is obvious which of the two former team-mates won this scrap, although Sancho’s team should have put Real out of sight by half-time.
Ultimately, neither Englishmen had particularly dazzling games.
Sancho, on loan from Manchester United, started brightly and gave Real left-back Ferland Mendy a few uneasy moments.
Yet this was nothing like the performances he delivered against PSG to help his team to the final.
Instead, with three minutes remaining of normal time, Sancho was replaced by another Englishman, teenager Jamie Bynoe-Gittens.
There was to be no drama. Bellingham added this Euro title to his La Liga winner’s medal. Not forgetting he has also been voted as the La Liga player of the year.
Bellingham, featuring in his 42nd game of the season for Real, was unable to make much of an impact in his role wide left.
On the hour mark, he had touched the ball 35 times but had done little with it.
With the scores at 0-0, he somehow failed to score with a header when he was unable to make contact with a cross from Vinicius. Any touch and it would have been a goal.
By then, the keyboard warriors were out in force on social media, dishing out some laughable criticism of England’s greatest talent. Potentially, our greatest ever player.
Yet the inevitable happened and Dortmund were left to curse those missed chances.
A mistake by Sancho led to a Madrid corner and Dani Carvajal leapt highest to head them into the lead.
Bellingham had another chance but it was deflected wide by Nico Schlotterbeck.
But, with seven minutes left, he helped stick the knife in to help Vinicius score and ensure this is an evening he will never forget.
In the crowd were his dad Mark, mum Denise and brother Jobe, who got into the stadium five hours early
Bellingham’s mum was in tears as her son stepped up to get his medal. And let’s all hope Bellingham will be lifting another trophy in Berlin on July 14.
The incident will be an embarrassment for the FA, who had pumped £5million into the security operation at Wembley after past problems including at the Euro 2020 final.
Their ‘ring of steel’ involved over 2,500 security stewards, the most the stadium has ever seen.
Real Madrid would go on to win the final 2-0 thanks to goals from Dani Carvajal and Vinicius Jr.
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An emotional Jude Bellingham had to fight back tears as he spoke to TNT Sports after the game as he paid tribute to his family.
It makes it a Champions League, La Liga title and Spanish Super Cup in his first season with the club.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
